On Sunday night, a driver crashed into the front of River & Hill Books in Rome, Ga., and then left the scene of the accident. In an Instagram post, the bookstore noted: "Thankfully no one was in the store when this happened, and the damage could have been a lot worse. We will be CLOSED today to assess and clean up and will hopefully have more information tomorrow about store hours and our schedule for the rest of the week. While we're closed, remember you can always shop online on our website. Thank you for your support! We hope to be back to normal as soon as possible! Special thanks to the Rome Fire Department for their quick response and help!"
---
In Kingston, N.Y., an arrest has been made in the hit-and-run incident that destroyed the "parklet" outdoor seating area in front of Rough Draft Bar & Books last month. Police told the Times Union that a 31-year-old Ulster Park man struck the parklet with his 2013 Chevy pickup at 4:45 a.m. on April 24 and then drove away from the scene without reporting the accident, according to security camera footage.
He was charged with misdemeanor criminal mischief for recklessly damaging property and leaving the scene of a property damage accident without reporting it, which is a violation, the Times Union wrote. The driver admitted to causing damage, but police did not say whether the crash was accidental or intentional.
On May 3, Rough Draft posted on Facebook that "the glorious parklet is REBUILT, thanks to the heroic efforts of our contractor Alejandro."